Life
by Deandra
Summary: Faramir reflects on the life of his youngest cousin, Lothiriel. Fluffy little ONESHOT. Part 111 of the Elfwine Chronicles.


_**Part 111 of the Elfwine Chronicles. The Elfwine Chronicles are a series of one-shots built around the family group of Eomer, Lothiriel and Elfwine. The total number will depend on how many ideas I get for new vignettes.**_

_**A/N: Not sure where this came from. The initial idea was a story from Faramir's POV, but then I had to find a direction for it to take, and this is what came out of my fingers.**_

_**ffn seems to be sending at least some alerts out again, so I will risk posting it. Some of you may have missed the others I posted recently: 109-Shoes, 110-Generations and all of the separate tale, Convenience. I have been busy during the "alert void", though, and have 7 unposted Chronicles ready (one is two chapters). So they will begin hitting over time.**_

_**Just out of curiosity, do some of you jump ahead chapters and read? My Stats page indicates more people have read a later chapter of Convenience than the two preceding it! It just seems weird, and this isn't the first time that's happened.  
**_

**Life**

**(October, 63 IV)**

I suppose love comes to everyone differently. Certainly it was much different for me than for my cousin, Lothiriel, though from what I later learned there were similarities.

Lothiriel was only twenty years of age when the Ring War ended in 3019. Even so, she was an intelligent, sensible girl who had ordered my Uncle's household after the death of her dear mother. Unlike many girls of the nobility, her days were not filled with idle vanity; rather, she sought to be useful to her father and the people of Dol Amroth. Likely having been raised without a mother's influence led her to be somewhat indulged by her father and brothers, and she often leaned toward odd activities for ladies. The accepted fashion in Gondor, for example, was for ladies to ride sidesaddle, but Lothiriel learned to ride bareback on the beach, taught by her youngest brother, and once she had sat astride a horse, there was no convincing her to adopt the sidesaddle style.

Despite her unusual characteristics, Lothiriel knew her place in the royal court of Dol Amroth. She could readily step into her role as hostess, and act the part well of a Prince's daughter. The only trouble was, she did not particularly care for such a restrictive and oppressive life.

Lothiriel and I had long been kindred spirits, sharing a love of books and learning. She was not free to roam Gondor and learn of people and places firsthand, so she had to settle for what was brought to her in the pages of a book and by the tongue of her cousin. As a man, I had more freedom and traveled Gondor more extensively, and whenever we were together, she pressed me for details of any new places or things I had experienced.

Because of that, I was rather surprised when she balked at coming to know the King of Rohan, brother to my betrothed. Here was her opportunity to speak directly with someone from another land, and she was disinclined to take it. When I questioned her on her reticence, it became apparent that it had nothing to do with lack of curiosity.

She rightly understood that her father hoped to make a marriage alliance for her with Rohan. He and King Eomer had met and become dear friends during the War, and her two youngest brothers held Eomer in great esteem as well. With so many killed by warfare, the pickings were somewhat slim for a suitable match for my cousin, and Eomer topped the list of desirable choices.

Possibly I was somewhat at fault for indulging her imagination all those years, but Lothiriel yearned to marry for love, something not typically of great import in weddings amongst Gondor's nobility. I had been fortunate to fall in love with Eowyn, sister to Rohan's king, for she was imminently suitable as the wife of the Steward of Gondor. Long had my brother Boromir and I remained unwed, both because of the uncertainty of our occupation as leaders of Gondor's fighting forces, and because we had found the women of the nobility to be rather insipid and unappealing. The Wraith-Slayer from Rohan was definitely neither, and she stole my heart almost the instant I met her. Though I struggled winning her love, and determining if her own affections lay elsewhere, eventually she had come to reciprocate my feelings. Lothiriel wanted something similar, and I could not fault her for that.

As well as I know my cousin, I should have suspected what would transpire over the next month or so after she had met Eomer. Despite her reluctance to be pushed to marry for a political alliance, something I am sure her father did not truly intend, Lothiriel managed to discover that Eomer was also balking at being so manipulated. Consequently, the two ended up working together to hide their budding relationship from everyone, especially the entire family. Not until Eomer asked for her hand and she mildly counseled her father to accept such an appropriate offer, did I realize what had happened, though I did not know the particulars. It took her family quite a bit longer to grasp this sudden about-face in Lothiriel's attitude, and their behavior while they did was actually rather amusing to watch.

In spite of everything, I am not certain that Lothiriel fully comprehended what marrying Eomer would entail. She was only familiar with her father's court, and though Elessar had taken the throne of Gondor and now had a wife at his side, it had not been in Lothiriel's lifetime that we had had a queen. Further, Rohan suffered greatly during the War and had much to overcome in rebuilding both her land and her people. Lothiriel has never shrunk from a task simply because it was difficult, but I do not think she realized the magnitude of what she would be undertaking.

Not surprisingly, their road to the altar was filled with bumps, but at length they were successfully wed. My cousin could not have anticipated the very different court of Rohan, despite the time she had spent there, nor all that she would be called upon to do and face as the wife of Eomer. More than once she had to watch him ride off with an eored to assist King Elessar in Gondor, or to resecure his own lands from persistent threats. At times, Eomer left her with child, or caring for small children. She could never be entirely sure he would return safely to her, and then she would have been called upon to rule in his stead until his heir was old enough.

Still, Eomer and Lothiriel were a good match. She was young and light-hearted, and helped to ease his worries and burdens, especially early on when the difficulties were so great. Their love was deep and steadfast, and it warmed my heart to see just how much they loved one another. Both had deserved such love, and they found their ultimate happiness in each other's arms.

I must confess, I find my little cousin to be quite an inspiration. I greatly admire all that she has accomplished in her life. She has raised a fine family, and both strengthened and supported her husband in ruling Rohan. Few women, I think, would have been equal to the task.

And now she faces an even greater challenge – life without her beloved husband. I watched her stand stoically at his grave site, containing her emotions as she honored the remarkable man she had married. I noticed her gentle concern in consoling her children who were bereft at the death of their dear father. When did she become so strong? Through the years, she has sometimes needed every bit of that strength to weather the storms of her life, and she will need it now to endure this heartache.

Her role at Meduseld has been gradually changing for a number of recent years, as Elfwine and his bride stepped more into the roles Eomer and Lothiriel once filled, and that will be the case even more so now. I am sure she will strengthen and support her son as she did her husband, but more importantly, I have heard my nephew say she has been training his wife, Dariel, to do the things she has done for Eomer for so long. I have little doubt she will gracefully step aside and let the new queen run her household as she sees fit.

In some ways, I look forward to Lothiriel's own passing, for I know that she will not truly be happy again until she and Eomer are reunited. Despite the joy her children and grandchildren give her, nothing compares to the happiness she found in Eomer. When her time comes, I will mourn her death, but I will rejoice in her life.

THE END

12/23/06

**_End note:  It is best that you read the Elfwine Chronicles in the order they were written. The more of them that I wrote, the more likely I was to make reference to one of the previous ones and something that happened there. If you want to read them in order, go to the top of this page and click on my name (Deandra). That will take you to my profile page. Scroll down and you will find all the stories I have written. The Elfwine Chronicles are in order from bottom to top since ffn shows them in the order they were posted. A few were posted out of number order, but you can read them in posting order or number order since those few won't be affected in the story content._**


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